Mercedes Parts

The one absolutely unassailable benefit about the hybrid revolution is that it has upset the homogeneity that has been pervading the automotive industry as of late. Take the uber-luxury sedan segment. In recent years, almost every manufacturer - BMW, Audi, Jaguar and Mercedes-Benz - followed the same strict formula: A mid-displacement V8 powered the entry-level model - if an $85,000-plus sedan can ever be called entry-level - upstaged by a seriously expensive 12-cylinder land yacht. It was a protocol that the BMW 7 Series, Mercedes-Benz S-Class, Jaguar XJ and Audi A8 followed without variation. That's until the green revolution and the Lexus LS 600hL threw a monkey wrench into the entire regimen.

Suddenly, the strict eight and 12-cylinder protocol was no longer universal since the LS hybrid stood atop the Lexus lineup where a V12 normally stood.